Kerry Dixon has long feared being replaced by Frank Lampard in the Chelsea record books but few will be happier if the midfielder succeeds in doing just that against Queens Park Rangers tonight.

Lampard’s brace in the 2-1 win against Everton on Sunday took his tally for the club to 192, just one behind Dixon, who became a fans’ favourite during his time at Stamford Bridge between 1983 and 1992.

Dixon is second in Chelsea’s all-time goal-scoring list behind Bobby Tambling, who is on 202.

On current form, having also scored against Aston Villa before Christmas, Lampard should certainly be backed to get at least one goal tonight to draw level with Dixon and keep his hopes alive of catching Tambling by the end of the season.

Dixon will certainly have no feelings of bitterness should he be overtaken by Lampard. He said: “I have been looking over my shoulder in terms of Frank catching me but I hope it happens against QPR.

“Frank is Super Frank as far as I’m concerned and whether I’m second or third in the list, it’s just an honour.

“Bobby Tambling is starting to look at it, too. Frank has got four months and I don’t know what is happening after that but Bobby will be under threat if Frank keeps scoring in the current form he’s in.

“Frank’s game has always been about arriving in the box, timing his runs and getting on the end of things. He’s still going to do that from whatever position he plays in. He has got six goals this season but in not that many starts. He has scored 20 goals in a season about six times, too — as a midfielder it’s phenomenal. The thing is, he will keep doing it. As long as he keeps putting on a football shirt, he will score goals.”

It has been a source of frustration for Lampard and the Chelsea fans that the club’s board have decided to let him leave when his contract runs out in the summer. Lampard turns 35 in June and despite the massive contribution he continues to make on the pitch, the feeling among the Blues hierarchy is that he is past his best. Dixon is just as mystified at the club’s stance as most people in the game and he believes Lampard still has a lot to offer.

“We’ve seen great players come and go over the years like Peter Osgood, Gianfranco Zola and Didier Drogba,” said Dixon. “But if it does happen to Frank, lots of people, myself included, will be disappointed. I hope he continues for another couple of years because he has still got it in him.”

Should Chelsea beat QPR at Stamford Bridge, it will be the first time they have won all four of their Christmas fixtures since they secured their second Premier League trophy, in 2005-06.

A victory will lift Chelsea to within 11 points of leaders Manchester United, with a game in hand, and continue the momentum that interim first-team coach Rafael Benitez has been building since replacing Roberto di Matteo in November. Dixon believes it is too early to get carried away by Benitez’s impact but says a few more wins can put Chelsea firmly in the hunt for the title.

“He [Rafa] is entitled to take credit for what he has done but I’m not going to dive in. Taking the overall picture, he has stabilised Chelsea. We were not in freefall but we were slipping.

“But let’s just see what happens when they’re tested at the highest level. I’ll judge him at the end of the season.”

Dixon, 51, has already seen enough of QPR to issue a far more damning assessment of Chelsea’s opponents. He said: “QPR are down. Harry Redknapp has worked wonders at previous clubs but this is one wonder too far.”

Benched Anton Ferdinand is kept out of the spotlight

Anton Ferdinand will start on the bench for Queens Park Rangers tonight as he returns to Stamford Bridge for the first time since John Terry appeared in court over claims he racially abused the defender, writes Simon Johnson.

Chelsea fans have chanted abuse towards Ferdinand on the three occasions the two teams have faced each other, following the original altercation between the players during a League match in October 2011, and were expected to target him again this evening.

Terry subsequently appeared in court last summer over claims he racially abused the QPR defender. He was found not guilty at the end of the trial but was later handed a four-game ban and fined £220,000 by the Football Association.

Manager Harry Redknapp looks set to stick with centre-halves Clint Hill and Ryan Nelsen tonight, even though the veteran pair struggled in the 3-0 defeat against Liverpool on December 30.

When asked if it was the right game to bring back Ferdinand, Redknapp said: “No. It would be difficult for him to play there.”

Chelsea skipper Terry will miss the game, too, with the knee injury he suffered two months ago but he won’t be sitting too far from Ferdinand because he usually watches Chelsea’s games from one of the back rows in the dug-out.

Redknapp says his team will adopt a conservative approach in the hope of avoiding the same humiliation Aston Villa suffered against Chelsea just before Christmas, when they were thumped 8-0.

QPR are lacking in confidence following three straight defeats and are bottom of the League, eight points behind Southampton who are in 17th place.

Redknapp is determined not to make the situation any worse by being too cavalier in the search for a much-needed victory. “It’s so difficult,” he said. “If you open yourself up, you can get ripped up like Aston Villa did.

“Whatever happens, we have to get some pride back, make sure we’re in the game and make ourselves tough to beat. They have so much ability, with Juan Mata, Frank Lampard, Oscar, Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres.

“You have to set yourself up to be difficult to beat and make sure you don’t get off to a horrendous start like Aston Villa did.

“Chelsea are a good side and they could be real challengers for the League title.”